Vertically Integrated Projects (VIP) provides UMD students of all backgrounds, disciplines, and levels of experience with the opportunity to engage in scaffolded, multidisciplinary team-based projects.
VIP Team Information
VIP Team
Biodiversity in 3D
VIP Faculty Mentors:
Dr. Evan Economo
Department of Entomology
Meeting Location, Day & Time:
Time: Wednesdays, 3:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Location: Plant Sciences Building (PLS) 4102
Description:
Every organism is a living machine, evolved to solve problems of sensing the world, acquiring resources, moving, and reproducing. An organism’s physical structure shapes how it functions and interacts with its environment, and millions of species represent a vast and mostly uncharted design space. The Biodiversity in 3D team explores this design space with 3D imaging and AI, through projects spanning biology, engineering, and art.
The world’s museum collections are vast libraries of these biological designs, yet for most species we have little or no digital record of their physical form. Advances in high-throughput 3D X-ray scanning now make it possible to capture internal and external structures in unprecedented detail across thousands of species. But most species remain to be imaged, and there is much work to be done to unlock insight from this raw data. Our team will help turn specimens and scans into digital resources for studying the evolution of form and function, learning from biological designs for bioinspired engineering, and creating art, animation, and interactive experiences.
Students will work in small groups on projects that connect their interests with the team’s research. Possible projects include:
Biology: Compare body forms and structures across species to investigate how biological designs evolve and how differences in shape and size relate to function.
AI and computing: Label structures in 3D scans, train and test AI models that identify anatomy, or build software to search and explore the collection.
Engineering: Turn scans into 3D prints and physical models, such as a model of a trap-jaw ant’s spring-loaded jaws, and explore mechanisms inspired by biological designs.
Art and communication: Render and animate organisms, build interactive galleries, or develop exhibit pieces, including for the UMD Insect Zoo.
Students work collaboratively with faculty, graduate students, and postdoctoral researchers, with opportunities to participate in every stage of the research process, from specimen to publication. Returning students take on more independent projects and mentor new team members, and students who make a substantive contribution are coauthors on the resulting papers or data releases. The team is part of UMD’s Predictive Biology Hub and builds on ongoing collaborations with museums and research institutions.
Methods:
Methods will vary by specific subproject. Students can develop skills in:
Specimen preparation and imaging.
3D image processing and modeling: identifying and labeling structures such as muscles, eyes, and jaws within a scan.
Developing and applying AI analysis pipelines.
Comparative anatomy and quantitative analysis of shape, size, and biological mechanisms change across the tree of life.
Computer-aided design, 3D printing, and building physical models.
3D rendering, animation, interactive visualization, and science communication.
Data organization, metadata, version control, and clear research documentation.
Majors:
Students from all majors are welcome. Especially relevant majors include Biological Sciences, Computer Science, Information Science, Mathematics, Physics, Bioengineering, Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Environmental Science and Policy, Environmental Science and Technology, Art, Immersive Media Design.
Preferred Interests:
We plan to start with about eight students with complementary interests. We are looking for students who are curious about organisms, enjoy solving problems, and want to collaborate with people whose skills differ from their own. You might enjoy working carefully with specimens and images, designing computational workflows, building things, or making scientific ideas visible through art and design. You do not need experience in all of these areas.
Students at every level are welcome, and no prior research experience is required. Biology, programming, quantitative analysis, fabrication, or visual communication experience will help you take on advanced projects more quickly. We value reliability, collegiality, and an ability to learn independently.
We especially welcome students interested in participating over multiple semesters, so they can develop a project and eventually mentor others. Team members will attend the weekly two-hour working session, contribute consistently to their projects, and document their work so others can build on it.